The Tale Of Soma Yoshida
by Adarious
Summary: In this timeline, there is no such person called Soma Yukihira. Instead, there's a teen known as Soma Yoshida, a boy with a mysterious past, and connections to major leaders in the cooking world. How exactly does he already know them all? What is it that happened in his past that he keeps locked away?
1. Chapter 1

The moment that Erina Nakiri entered the prestigious grounds of Totsuki Academy, she knew that this place was built only for those whose cooking skills were far beyond "exemplary". The sun shone brightly, casting a warm, golden glow over the academy grounds. The walkways were completely void of any dirt or grime; the buildings loomed tall over Erina, exerting a grand and pristine essence.

Truly, this was the ultimate culinary school in the entire world. Erina knew that this was where her destiny laid, which would lead her to becoming the C.E.O. of her very own restaurant chain. After all, she was a Nakiri. Anything short of her goals would be labeled as "inadequate" in her family's eyes.

"Erina-sama!" a girl shouted from behind. Erina turned her head, and her lush purple eyes fell upon her dear secretary, Hisako Arato. Erina's mouth formed a slight smile as Hisako ran to catch up with her. Once the pinkette had reached her, she looked up towards Erina, a confused look upon her face.

"Erina-sama, shouldn't you be preparing for the transfer applicants' judging in the main hall? It's to begin in half an hour, after all." Erina rolled her eyes, and pat Hisako on the head.

"Let's be honest, Hisako. None of those would-be chefs even have a snowball's chance in hell of making it anyway. Why should I waste my precious time with those pathetic wannabes?" Hisako sighed lightly, as if she was a little exasperated.

"Well, Erina-sama, you do know that Senzaemon-dono would be very disappointed if he catches wind that you abandoned your duties, right?" Erina sighed inwardly. 'She really knows what to say to motivate me, doesn't she?' she thought to herself. 'If there was one man in the world I'd never let down, it would be Grandfather.'

"Fine." Erina sighed. "I guess it'll only take less than five minutes to clear them out, anyway." She turned towards the direction of the main hall and began walking there, closely accompanied by a sweat-dropping Hisako.

As the duo approached the hall, the bustling of the dozens of eager transfer applicants grew louder and louder. Erina's face changed into one of deviousness. 'They're so sure they'll get in, it's hilarious. I can't wait to see their faces when I scare them into running.' Hisako, who noticed the look on Erina's face, felt a twinge of pity towards the poor amateurs inside the hall.

Then, with a dramatic flair, Erina pushed the doors open. Silence swept through the ranks of the many applicants as the doors all but slammed into the walls they were connected to. Unfazed by all the eyes that rested upon her, Erina confidently walked forward towards the far end of the room, followed by a slightly nervous Hisako, who constantly muttered "Sorry." and "Excuse me." as she did her best to keep up with Erina.

Once the pair reached their places, Erina turned to face them, flinging her golden hair into the air just for good measure.

"Welcome to Totsuki Academy." she began, making sure to look and sound as neutral as possible. 'Wait for it...' she thought devilishly.

"I am Erina Nakiri, also known as the God Tongue. I hope you're ready for your tests. I'm pleased to be able to personally inform you all of your challenge." She smirked as she heard undercurrents of excitement ripple through the crowd. 'You have no idea what you all just got yourselves into.' she inwardly purred.

Suddenly, an aura of power surrounded her, seemingly sweeping throughout the room, making most of the newcomers shiver. Some even began to panic, and edge themselves slowly towards the doors. Seeing all this greatly pleased Erina, although Hisako sweatdropped, wondering why Erina always tried to scare others into submission.

"Your test is to create a dish that can please my palate. Anything less will result in your immediate failure." she announced, her voice now as sharp as a kitchen knife. Her smile grew into one of satisfaction as shouts of protest began to fill the air as many in the crowd began to erupt into chaos.

"However!" Erina shouted, quieting down the panicking group of people. "I shall overlook this if all of you amateurs vacate this school before this minute expires." There was a brief silence, until the sound of stampeding broke out as the dozens of once eager chefs now ran like hell towards the gates of Totsuki Academy, screaming in absolute terror.

Erina had turned away before the crowd had even dispersed, certain that she had scared off every single one of those 'worthless amateurs'.

"Well, Hisako? I believe I have completed this boring chore, am I wrong?" Hisako merely sighed, knowing better than to argue over what the actual terms should've been. Instead, she simply replied with "Yes ma'am."

Erina smiled warmly towards her secretary and beloved friend. She knew that Hisako probably felt a little uneasy by her actions, and decided she should make up for that. She pat Hisako's head once more, and smiled at her.

"Alright Hisako. What do you say we go somewhere quiet and I whip up something good, just for the both of us? Does that sound good to you?" As she expected, Hisako quickly looked up at her, her mouth slightly watering.

"Really, Erina-sama?!" Erina's smile grew brighter. "Of course, Hisako." She cupped Hisako's face into her palm. Hisako let out a surprised little squeal, which made Erina giggle.

However, before she could continue, a voice rang throughout the hall. "Excuse me, but I really don't have the time, nor the taste, for watching you two make out with each other."

Squeaking with embarrassment, Erina quickly moved away from Hisako and turned around to face the speaker. What she found,however, was not what she was expecting. At all.

A single boy stood in her view, gazing at her with such an intense look that for a second she forgot that she was the one in charge. Quickly regaining control of herself, she shook off her feeling of uneasiness and closely inspected the remaining contender. Her eyes moved from his bright red hair, to his crisp black track jacket and t-shirt, to his well-toned body figure, then to his golden eyes.

'Golden eyes...so his eyes are rare like mine, huh?' Erina almost lost herself, staring into the depths of this newcomer's eyes. Fortunately, Hisako's voice managed to shake her out the trance his eyes seemed to send her into.

"Erina-sama? Are you alright?" Hisako asked again, and Erina turned to look at her. "I'm fine, just a little...dizzy." Hisako looked at her with concern. "Should I call for a nurse?" Erina waved her hand. "No, I'm fine. More importantly..."

She turned back around to look at the boy, who's stare still unnerved her a tiny bit. Refusing to let him dominate her, she took a deep breath to steady herself.

Then, she turned to look at him head-on. "I think you didn't hear me correctly. I said tha-" She was sharply cut off by the boy, who never lowered his stare, nor the intensity it carried.

"I heard you loud and clear, Erina Nakiri. I accept your terms." Erina just stared, speechless. 'This guy thinks he can actually impress my palate? He either has balls of steel, or he's just plain stupid if he thinks he stands a chance...' she thought to herself.

She looked over him, now with more curiosity than contempt. "What's your name?" The boy's eyes narrowed, causing Erina's body to slightly tremble from the force his presence seemed to create.

"Soma. Soma Yoshida." was his simplistic reply. 'Soma Yoshida?' Erina thought. 'He looks fine, but I wonder if he has any actual talent.'

"Erina-sama, here's his profile that was submitted to us." Hisako presented a folder containing Soma's basic information, which Erina opened to search for any credentials he might've been given.

However, his bio was surprisingly...bleak. He held no recommendations, nor did he have any connections to any prestigious chef. In fact, the only information that was relevant to cooking that he had put into this folder was that he helped run a family restaurant called "Yukihira's".

'This plebeian dared to show his face here, and even had the nerve to mock me?!' Erina boiled with anger towards Soma, who either didn't realize her rage, or simply didn't care. Instead, he remained firm, meeting Erina's furious glare with his apathetic gaze.

Hisako, who was merely watching this, could swear that lightning shot forth from their eyes, and engaged the other in a deadly dance of power. Then, the redhead, Soma Yoshida, sighed loudly in exasperation.

"Are we going to begin my test soon, Erina-san? Or should I just go report this to your higher-ups?" Erina scoffed, her displeasment finally overflowing. 'That was the absolute wrong thing to say to me.' She fumed to herself.

She glared at the newcomer, her eyes blazing with fury. "Watch your mouth, Mr. Yoshida. You'd be wise to know your place. If you can't grasp that, I shall remind you of it." With that, Erina walked forward towards the boy, who still did nothing but remain still, the only part of his body moving being his eyes.

However, before she could reach him, Soma finally broke eye contact to glance at a door nearby that was slightly ajar. "Alright old man, I'm getting tired of her futile hostility. Why don't you just come out already so I can hold a conversation with someone worthy enough?"

Erina's gaze shot towards the door as it slowly swung open, revealing the one and only Senzaemon Nakiri, who walked into the room while chuckling softly. Well, to him it was soft. For everyone else, a low rumbling could be heard, and Hisako gulped as he closed the distance between them.

Erina quickly bowed respectfully, and was swiftly accompanied by Hisako, although she was still trembling. However, Soma still remained standing tall, though now a certain gleam in his eyes began to shine.

"Well old man, it seems you're even more wrinkly than when I last saw you. And here I thought that you couldn't even get any worse for wear than you were then. Man, color me impressed."

Erina felt as though she had suddenly gained the rage of thousands of Yakuza hitmen.

"Don't you dare talk like that to-" Erina began to growl towards Soma, but Senzaemon merely raised his hand to quiet her, his face entirely covered in shadows. Grinning in sick anticipation, Erina backed off, and waited for this newcomer's ultimate demise by her beloved Grandfather.

So imagine her surprise when instead of beating Soma senseless, Senzaemon's face was revealed to be one of amusement as he laughed loudly. He wasn't even faking it to lower Soma's guard, Erina would know if he was merely acting. No, he was legitimately laughing.

Soma's face also morphed from an expression of apathy into one of slight humor as a small smirk formed itself into his face. He even chuckled a little as well. Then, to Erina's complete bewilderment, the two men shook hands, not as teacher and student, but as equals.

"I'm guessing from that childish rant of yours that you've missed me while you were away, haven't you Soma-kun?" Senzaemon inquired. Soma merely raised his eyebrows at that question. "Maybe that's just your old brain wishing away, Senzaemon-dono." Senzaemon simply laughed even harder that comeback.

"I see your father hasn't been going easy on you with the insulting, huh?" Soma's facial features instantly hardened. "Old man, we've established a good mood at record speed. Let's try not to crash it down over our heads." His golden eyes were once again narrowed.

"Fine, fine. I shall not pry any further." Senzaemon sighed. Soma's features relaxed to his normal indifferent face after that. Meanwhile, Erina had been paralyzed the entire time. The movements she made were her head as it swiveled back and forth between the two, who seemed to be old friends, judging from their banter.

'Huh? Am I the only one who doesn't know what the (the following word of choice has been censored by the paranoid author of this fanfic) is going on here?' Erina's head was buzzing with questions, but her body could only stare in awe.

"Um, Erina-sama? Do you know what's happening right now?" an extremely timid voice questioned from behind her. She turned around to meet Hisako's hesitant eyes. She smiled gently in an effort to calm her friend down. "Don't worry, I'll get to the bottom of this, and then I'll tell you all about it, okay? In the meantime, go outside and complete the rest of your duties today, got it?"

Hisako nodded, and she then excused herself and exited the building. Once she was gone, Erina turned to face the two men, who now were also completely silent. Erina's arms folded in front of her as she stared at the duo. "So, where should we even begin...Yoshida-kun?" Both men turned to face her, and she narrowed her gaze at Soma.

"How exactly do you and Grandfather know each other?" Erina blurted out inelegantly, prompting a raised eyebrow from each male. Soma scratched his head and Erina semi consciously backed away from him, hoping that this commoner had brought a plague of fleas or some other horrendous catastrophe with him.

Soma didn't really seem to care, although Erina noticed his shoulders droop a little as she slowly backed away. Senmaezon gazed amusingly at Soma, and spoke in his unique tone of voice that always bore undertones of power and danger. "Well, Soma-kun? Aren't you going to tell miss Erina here of our wonderful travels around the world?" Erina's gaze shot towards Senmaezon, who merely was sipping tea from a cup that seemed to have materialize into his hand.

'No way! Traveling around the world with Grandfather?!' She didn't have a chance to accompany him on his many trips, and even the most accomplished never receive such an honor. Now, she discovered someone who had, and it was a teenager?!

She whipped her eyes back towards Soma Yoshida, whose eyes gleamed with slight excitement. "Sure thing, old man." Erina had no doubt in her mind that she was unconsciously leaning forward (much to her embarrassment, of course) awaiting his tale.

Instead, Soma began to walk towards the kitchen, with Senzaemon in tow. Erina just stared at the backs of the two retreating men for a while in confusion, then grew impatient. "Hey!" she shouted. "Aren't you going to tell me your stories?! Get back here!"

Soma stopped, then turned around. "Are you stupid?" he asked bluntly. Although Erina's temper skyrocketed to new heights, she didn't speak, knowing that the information she'd lose because of it was more valuable. However, she didn't need to struggle to control herself, because the words that left Soma's mouth next left her breathless.

She watched as he grabbed a black cloth that was tied around his wrist, and wrapped it around his forehead. As he gazed at her, his face and body posture gave off vibes of pure confidence.

"Why waste time telling you with words," he began, his mouth grinning slyly. "When I can show you with food?" Erina lightly gasped. 'I can see the results of such an honorable trip? He'll actually show me?!' She could barely contain her own excitement, and could even feel a genuine smile lighting up her face and melting the 'ice queen' act she usually hid behind.

Senzaemon Nakiri watched from the shadows, and smiled in great delight. 'The diamonds in the rough of the 92nd generation.' he thought as an aura of extreme power surrounded the duo. 'I know they'll change the world when they graduate. After all, this is their time.'

Soma Yoshida extended a hand, his golden eyes burning with knowledge and power that Erina couldn't begin to fathom. "Do you want to see it, Erina Nakiri? The dish that will make you say 'delicious'?"

Erina Nakiri accepted his hand, her purple eyes shining with interest, and a slight hint of anticipation. "Many have claimed that. Let's see if yours will be the first to truly satisfy me… Soma Yoshida."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, guys! I'm so sorry for not updating for so long! I'm going to skip the** **excuse** **reason why I've not updated, but just know I'm hugely sorry. Anyways, please enjoy this new chapter! If not, then...please don't kill me. Yeah, that sounds about right. Enjoy!**

Erina's mind was in such a tremendous frenzy that it could've been rated as a level five hurricane as she followed her Grandfather and Soma Yoshida into one of the testing kitchens down the hall.

She had no idea that there was an individual who could even call themselves a friend of her wonderful Grandfather, and yet here one stood in front of her. It befuddled her how a mere teenager could hold this much honor within him. If he had even breathed a single word of what he had done, countless kitchens would practically kill each other for his talent.

 _So why is it,_ she wondered, _that he isn't well known? Is he keeping this all a secret? Why?_ Her thought train was interrupted by the sound of a door creaking open. Erina looked up to see that they had arrived at the testing kitchen.

Her eyes swept around the room, taking note of the many exquisite ingredients stored neatly within their gleaming cabinets. The stainless steel table in front of them glistened, and the stove behind it looked absolutely spotless.

"So, Yoshida-kun? What are you going to make today?" Senzaemon's deep voice caught Erina's attention, and she swung her head to look at Soma excitedly. Soma looked around the room, and inspected the cabinets for ingredients.

"Tch. All these expensive ingredients hurt my eyes." Soma droned lazily. Erina blinked twice as that registered in her brain. _Expensive? Hurts his eyes? Don't tell me…_ Her eyes narrowed on the young man as he walked up to a bemused Senzaemon.

"Hey old man, can you go make yourself useful and get me this list of ingredients?" Soma quickly wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it over to Senzaemon, who took it and looked at it. "Hm. This is quite a list, Yoshida-kun. Are you sure you want all of this?" Soma looked at him with an impassive face. "Yeah, I'd rather use that than all of these stuff." He gestured to the surrounding cabinets.

Senzaemon nodded gravely, and rang a bell that seemed to just appear from the folds of his sleeve. Instantly, a man was by his side, and Senzaemon handed him Soma's list. The man looked it over, paled, then quickly bowed and ran out the door.

Erina gazed at Soma, who turned to stare back at her with his apathetic face. "What?" he asked her, his eyebrow raised in curiosity. Erina quickly looked away, her face slightly burning. "N-nothing!" she stuttered. She heard Soma exhale, although she couldn't tell if it was because of tiredness or if it was condescending.

Before she could comment further, though, the doors flew open as the servant rushed back in with a few groceries bags. Senzaemon motioned towards the steel table, and the man swiftly placed the packages upon the table, then excused himself and exited the room.

Soma approached the table with a grin on his face. Erina leaned in closer from behind him, brushing her bright ginger hair to the side. She stared quizzically at the plastic bags. Soma began to reach into the packages to pull out their contents onto the table in a grandiose manner. _What could these ingredients be?_ Erina pondered.

She gasped as he stepped aside to reveal the contents that were now neatly placed upon the table. _It's… it's…_ she thought, unable to believe her eyes. "It's commoner food!" Erina shrieked aloud, then covered her mouth in shame as she noticed both men give her a look that all but weighed her down as though the sky was resting upon her shoulders.

True enough, though, upon the table was food that must've been bought from the nearest general convenience store outside of Totsuki. A carton of eggs laid upon the table, as well as a bag of normal rice, frozen chicken and a dozen other things.

"Why would you use these ingredients, Soma-kun?" Erina tentatively asked. He turned to face her, and she felt a chill run down her spine as she caught sight of his prideful smirk. "Why, because this way, I have more of a challenge making a superb meal, instead of using all this fancy-shmancy food here."

Erina walked forward, but Senzaemon appeared behind her and gently ushered her back towards him. She looked behind her to see him, wondering why he was edging her away from Soma and his table of ingredients.

As if he was able to hear her thoughts, he spoke. "Stay back a bit, Erina. Soma can be a little… interesting when he prepares his food." She looked up at his face, and saw how serious he was. "Eh? What do you mean, interesting?" She turned back to look at Soma, but gulped once she saw him.

He looked as though he morphed into a mysterious gentleman, from his gleaming, playful eyes to his perfect, quirky smile. Erina's face quickly heated up to the point where it burned. _W-what's with this guy?!_ she pondered, her heart beating incredibly fast. _He's like a different person…_

"Well then, Erina-chan…" Soma's voice had even changed, from his usual emotionless droning to a seductive, mellifluous tone. Erina's mind had begun to overload from the dramatic change Soma had underwent by now. "What say we begin this little test?"

Suddenly, faster than Erina's eyes could follow, four potatoes flew into the air. There was the sound of a knife unsheathing, and Erina watched in amazement as Soma's right hand slashed through the air at impossible speeds. All she could see was silver flashes where his hands were slicing.

Erina was then distracted by something resembling the sound of a machine gun firing. Her eyes quickly shot back to the table, and gasped at what she saw. There were carrots on a cutting board upon the table and was being diced by Soma, who held a chef knife in his left hand.

However, his left hand was moving up and down so fast that Erina could've sworn that it was one solid metal wall he was holding, not a knife. The carrots seemed to propel themselves towards the knife, and landed neatly in a bowl on the other side of the knife.

Once the last carrot had landed into the bowl, Soma grabbed it and lifted it into the air. The diced potatoes were caught into the bowl by Soma, who didn't even glance up. He just spun as though he was performing a stylish dance on a stage.

As the potatoes fell into the bowl, Erina noticed a pot on the stove that was emitting steam from the small gap the lid made. _Wha?! When did that get there?!_ Erina thought in confusion. She continued to stare as Soma walked over to the pot, and dumped the bowl's contents into it. He picked up a stirring spoon, and carefully mixed around the pot.

An enticing aroma exited from the open pot, and Erina caught a wiff of it. To her surprise, her body grew incredibly hot, and she had to stifle a moan as she doubled over. _What the hell is that guy cooking?!_ Erina could only imagine the wonders of Soma's food. How amazing it was to emit such a wonderful smell.

Soma turned to look at her, and her breath was caught in her throat at how...manly he looked. Despite herself, she began to blush profusely as he continued to gaze at her with his sparkling eyes.

Soma became a blur of activity, rushing to and fro behind the table. Senzaemon chuckled, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "My, my." His voice boomed. "He's making _that_ dish, isn't he?" His face became overcome with shadows.

Erina, knowing what was to happen, threw herself onto her Grandfather as he began to cast off his robes. "No Grandfather!" she squealed. "Don't strip right now! You'll ruin my appetite!" Senzaemon rumbled with depression, but he reluctantly pulled his clothes back over his shoulders. "Fine, fine. Anything for you, my beloved Granddaughter."

Erina sighed in relief, then heard the sound of dinnerware being set onto the table, and whirled around. Placed upon the table greatly surprised her, since… "It's just rice! Rice, egg and some seasoning!" she complained, flabbergasted at the mere sight.

True enough, two bowls were now on the table, one filled with rice and an egg and the other filled with strange cubes. Erina's eye twitched in disbelief as she stumbled for words to speak. However, she could think of none.

Soma smiled at her, and her face became so hot, one could've practically cooked on its surface. "Well, Erina-chan?" he gazed at her with his dazzling eyes, and Erina had to refrain from doing something incredibly stupid. _Calm down, Erina. Calm down._ Erina thought to herself.

She then opened her eyes, and her 'Ice Princess' act was back in full force. "So what is this? I thought you could make something exquisite from all of these commoner foods. Yet all I see is a bowl of rice and some seasoning. What exactly are you planning, baka?"

Soma made his way over to her, and leaned on the table. "Oh? Do you believe me to be a liar? Do I look like a troublemaker to you, Erina-chan?" Erina's cheeks were now unbearably hot, and she had to face the other way. "O-of course you don't! You look like a-"

She was about to say "an angel", but she caught herself in time. She remained silent, even when he walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "A what?" She shoved him away from her. "Nothing, baka!" He just sighed. "A tsundere, huh? I find that cute, you know."

Suddenly, Senzaemon cleared his throat, and Soma backed off. "Alright, alright! I'll back off...for now, at least." Erina ignored the pleasurable shivers that coursed down her spine, and looked at her Grandfather. "Now Erina. What have I told you about judging a book by its cover?"

He turned to Soma, who was sharpening one of his knives. "Now, Soma. Show her what makes this dish special." Erina leaned forward, eagerness all over her face. Soma merely sighed. "Hai, hai." He grabbed the bowl with the seasoning, and dumped it onto the rice and egg.

"Now, Erina-chan. Watch closely what happens." Soma told her, and brought the bowl closer to her face. Eventually, the cubes began to melt into the rice and coated the egg. Erina gasped in excitement, to which both men chuckled lightheartedly.

Soma reached for chopsticks, and placed them into the bowl. "Here you go, Erina-chan. Enjoy." She took the bowl and had a bite. Sudden pleasure overwhelmed her mind, and she stumbled to stay upright. She moaned as heat spread throughout her body. Senzaemon caught her and held her up.

"Tsk. Soma, you really need to dial back on the taste. Look what happened to her." Soma gently grabbed the bowl back from Erina before she dropped it onto the floor. She saw this, and tried to tell him to give it back. All that came out, though, was some murmurs of disapproval.

Soma chuckled, and kneeled down to lock eyes, face-to-face. "Don't worry, Erina-chan. If you really want it, I'll wrap this up and send it with you back home, kay?" Erina just nodded, grateful he understood her intentions. She'd worry about him seeing her this weak later.

Soma ruffled her hair, which caused her to blush and murmur again. Before she closed her eyes to drift into her subconscious, she heard Soma whisper "Alright then. I'll see around, Erina-chan. Just rest easy till then." Then, he leaned in even closer. "Remember, though, I'm going to make you say my food's delicious, so you better be ready."


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! Here's the third chapter! I tried to make it a little longer, but it's still kinda short. Anyways, I'm uploading this during my 5th Period Science class, so here's to hoping I don't get in trouble lol. As always, please leave reviews and comments,be it positive or negative. Have a great (insert time here)! :)**

Erina awoke to someone who gently shook her. Groaning, she opened her eyes to behold her assistant Hisako frowning slightly as she loomed over her. Erina waved at her to go away before closing her eyes once again, eager to just stay in bed all day.

She heard Hisako sigh. "Erina-sama, you need to get ready for school. We have a busy schedule today." Erina groaned more, but reluctantly rose to sit upright on her pink cushioned bed.

Mumbling some unsatisfied complaints, she then swung her feet off the bed onto the cold wooden floor. HIsako stood on the side, carefully monitoring Erina in case she needed any assistance. Erina managed to rise to her feet, though, and shuffled to the door.

When Hisako moved to open the door for her, Erina raised her hand to block her. "I can open a door for myself, Hisako." she reminded her beloved friend. Hisako nodded and fell in behind Erina as she exited the room and walked down towards the kitchen to have coffee.

Once they arrived, though, they knew something was off. All of the staff stationed in the kitchen neglected their duties and kept glancing longingly at the fridge. Erina approached one of the workers and waved her hand in front of his face, and he eventually tore his eyes from the fridge to look at her.

"What's the matter, Matthews?" She asked the man, glancing at his name tag to properly address him. He looked back at the fridge with that wistful look again. "Well, Ms. Nakiri, earlier Mr. Senzaemon came in and placed this bowl of rice and egg into the fridge. We all wondered what he was doing with such a plain dish, so our Shift Manager took the dish and ate some."

He looked back to stare at Erina, his gaze incredibly intense. "Now, she's in the hospital because she passed out on the floor from the mere flavor of that dish. As she was wheeled away, she kept saying "I'm coming, over and over!"

Hisako made an "eww" face and backed away, but Erina's eyes widened as the story seemed to awaken something deep within her. 'That dish... I know it…'

Suddenly, recognition kicked in as she remembered a boy named Soma Yoshida, and the heavenly dish he had gracefully concocted out of practically nothing. The dish was…

"Transforming Furikake Gohan!" Erina exclaimed, and rushed towards the fridge. Opening the door, she frantically searched for Soma's dish, ignoring Hisako's uneasy glances as well as the hungry stares the staff gave.

Unfortunately, all she found was their regular food. Matthews approached her, and tapped her to get her attention. "Mr. Senzaemon took the dish when the Shift Manager went to the hospital. He probably has it now."

Erina, upon hearing this, wasted no further time as she raced towards the elevator nearby, and pushed the button that would take her to her Grandfather's study. The doors slowly closed in front of her, and she saw that she had left Hisako outside in the kitchen.

"Sorry, Hisako!" she yelled as the elevator doors closed, leaving a shocked and confused Hisako staring at the smooth metal doors. "Erina-sama?" was all she could say as she just stood still, alone in the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Erina stared intensely at the floor indicator above the doors. Every second she spent in there felt like a long, torturous hour. Finally, when the light flickered to the fifth floor's spot, Erina all but tore the doors open with her bare hands as she barreled through them and ran to the doors leading to Senzaemon's study.

Once she reached them, she burst through into the room panting and out of breath. Senzaemon casually looked up from the mountain of paperwork he had completed with an amused smile on his face.

"Ah, Erina my dear. What has you all worked up this-" He couldn't even complete his sentence before Erina approached his desk and slammed her hands onto it. The mountain of paperwork fell and scattered across the floor.

"Where is it?!" she shrieked, her eyes appearing to be completely bloodshot. Senzaemon merely smiled at his beloved Granddaughter as she scanned his desk for something, and he had an idea of what it was.

"My dear Granddaughter, are you by any chance…" he reached into his sleeve and produced a tupperware with the Transforming Furikake Gohan inside. "looking for this?" Erina, upon seeing the food, began to practically snarl as she clawed at it. However, it was beyond her reach as Senzaemon stretched his arms and yawned, moving the tupperware high into the air.

"Give it! Please give it to me, Grandfather!" Erina was almost crying tears of absolute grief and loss as she desperately tried to grab the tupperware. Senzaemon hesitated as he saw her tears streak down her cheeks, and sighed. No matter what the case, he never wanted to see any of his Granddaughters cry. 'Curse my soft heart.' he thought before he looked at Erina with a stern face.

"Erina, I have one condition if I give you this dish." Erina nodded incredibly fast, her tears already disappearing from her eyes. "Anything, Grandfather, anything!" He chuckled at her enthusiasm before he leaned closer to her. "I want you to seduce Soma-kun and become his lover."

Apparently, from her reaction, she was not expecting that. Her face erupted into a peculiar shade of red as she gasped and stuttered with an expression that strongly resembled a fish out of water. "W-wh-what?! Why wo-would I e-ever do t-that?!" Erina screamed as her legs started to tremble.

Senzaemon enjoyed this wonderful scene for a moment longer, then sighed and shook his head in mock disappointment. "I see." His tone was gravelly as he pretended to be deeply hurt. "Well, if you can't admit to what you feel," Erina made a small squealing noise at that. "Then at least do this."

Senzaemon smiled kindly at his now guarded Granddaughter. "Be his friend." She tilted her head at his request. "That's...it?" He nodded. "Soma-kun doesn't really have any friends due to his...unique personality. Therefore, I want you to become his friend so that he at least has someone to rest upon if he's overwhelmed." She frowned. "Overwhelmed by what?"

Instead of answering, Senzaemon held up his free hand (the hand with the tupperware was underneath the desk, out of sight). "I have already said too much about him. You can ask him that yourself." She fidgeted and generally looked uncomfortable, but after a few minutes, she reluctantly nodded. "Ok, fine. I'll be his...friend, but nothing more!" Senzaemon chuckled at how she blushed at the end of her sentence.

"Then here you go." Senzaemon held out the tupperware to Erina, who quickly grabbed it and ran out of his study. "Thank you, Grandfather!" she called out over her shoulder. He just smiled at her as she ran away, and even chuckled when she ran straight past her assistant, who quickly chased after her.

Then he just looked around to all the paperwork that were still strewn about on the floor. "Well now, this just won't do." he muttered to himself. Then, he stamped his foot onto the floor, and all the paperwork flew up on a freaky gust of wind back onto the desk, still trembling as though they were completely terrified.

"That's better." he mused to himself. However, before he could sit down and enjoy filling out the rest of the forms he needed to complete, a voice rang out from above. "You know, old man, I may start to get jealous of your wizarding ways if this keeps up." Senzaemon calmly looked up to see none other than Soma Yoshida smirking at him from atop one of the bookcases.

"Ah, Soma-kun. What a wonderful supris-" Before he could even complete **that** sentence, Soma interrupted him. "Cut the chit-chat, you knew I was here all along." Senzaemon took a moment to wonder if all teenagers were this impatient before continuing. "Very well, then. Yes, I knew you were there even before Erina came in."

Soma rubbed his face with his hand as he soaked that in. "So you knew I was here, yet you still mentioned all that to that girl?" Senzaemon smiled. "Why, yes! I truly wish for you two to get together and become the greatest couple the cooking industry ever saw!"

Standing in what one could consider to be a heroic pose, Senzaemon raised his hand to reach into the air. "Only then can I rest, knowing that your children would be the greatest cooks this insignificant world will ever behold!"

Soma, however, was already walking to the door before Senzaemon was finished. "I'm leaving, old man. Have fun making delusional fantasies that'll never come true." Senzaemon turned around to face his paperwork. "Oh, I wouldn't say that. After all, you are interested in her, aren't you?"

Soma froze mid-step, and Senzaemon's smile grew. "Soma-kun, you have to be honest with yourself. Otherwise, you'll destroy yourself." Soma turned back around, his eyes full of hatred and self-loathing.

"You don't think I know that?" Soma snarled. "But she doesn't know yet. Every day, I feel myself slipping into depression. Into insanity. That's exactly why no one should be near me. I'm not worthy to have any companions. It doesn't matter what that "Fairy Tail" anime says, I'll never have nakama to call my own."

"Oh, so you watch Fairy Tail? Erina does too." Senzaemon chuckled. "She's a huge fan of it, in fact." Soma narrowed his eyes. "Not the point, old man!" Soma all but growled. "If you were a genius like they say, you'd know that you should be trying to keep her away from me, not trying to get her close to a walking time bomb!"

With that, he turned around one final time to leave. However, as he reached for the doorknob, Senzaemon's voice echoed throughout the room. "Since you watch that show, here's a quote from it that I find befitting of this situation." Soma paused, giving Senzaemon an opportunity to speak his mind.

Smiling, Senzaemon sat down into his chair, and folded his hands together. "There are people in this world who prefer solitude." Soma turned slightly, and Senzaemon looked at him dead in the eyes. "But there is no one who can withstand it."

Soma stared back silently, his face incomprehensible. Then he turned around and exited the room without making a single noise. Senzaemon closed his eyes, and sighed inwardly. 'I sincerely hope you can do what I've asked you to do, Erina.' he thought. 'After all, you're Soma's last hope.'

Meanwhile, Erina had much more pressing matters on her mind as she focused on running towards her first class of the day with Hisako at her heels. "Erina-sama, please wait up!" Erina turned back to reach out towards her dear friend. "Hisako, we have to hurry if we're to make it to class on time!"

Hisako smiled, then pushed Erina forward. "Then go, Erina-sama! I'll catch up later!" Erina looked towards her, but Hisako smiled and waved her on. "Go!" Erina smiled back, her eyes slightly watering up. "Okay! I'll make it for the both of us!"

She dashed up the staircase, and ran down the hall as the last minute she had threatened to expire on her. Once she neared the door of her class, she heard her homeroom teacher mentioning something about a new student, but she didn't care enough for it to register in her brain. All that mattered to her at the moment was reaching her seat before the bell rang.

She grasped hold of the door, and slid it open so hard, the door slammed into the wall with a sound that resembled one of booming thunder. "What was th-?" The homeroom teacher exclaimed before she caught sight of Erina.

"Oh, Erina-chan. Cutting it rather close, aren't you?" The elderly homeroom teacher smiled at her. "I'm sorry, teacher! I just wanted to make it on time!" Erina breathlessly tried to inform the teacher of the circumstances, but the older woman simply waved her off.

"It's all right, dear. As long as you don't make a ruckus like that again, I'll let you off with a warning." Erina slumped over and sighed in relief, then paused as something in her mind clicked into place. Her eyes widened in surprise as someone made their way to her and knelt down to look at her in the eyes.

"Yo, Erina-chan. You alright?" Soma Yoshida looked at her with his gleaming golden eyes. Erina subconsciously took note of the way his sport shirt snuggly clinged to his body, revealing underlines of his toned torso. The way his hair seemed to glow in the sunlight like a blazing fire.

Squealing as her face lit up to a rosy hue, she backpedaled into the door behind her and slammed into it. The students all stared in astonishment as the prideful "God Tongue" Erina Nakiri was acting as though she was a common schoolgirl. Soma, on the other hand, didn't realize the ground-breaking sight he had caused.

"Erina-sama, I made it! I made-aaaahhhhhhh!" A high voice interrupted the moment as Hisako ran into sight, panting and sweating. However, her eyes widened when she saw Soma kneeling in front of a blushing Erina. Hisako's own cheeks began to heat up as her mind began to think of dirty scenarios that could've led to this.

"H-Hisako!" Erina stuttered, knowing exactly what her poor assistant was probably thinking of. She started to rise to approach her, then yelped as Soma gently grabbed her arm to help her up, then backed off. "Hisako! It's not what you think!" Erina chose to ignore Soma for a while as she attempted to comfort her shocked childhood friend.

Meanwhile, their audience was still in awe as they saw Erina in a different light than she usually was basked in. Soma turned to all of them and addressed them in is normal bored tone. "So anyway, my name's Soma Yoshida, and I'm pleased to meet you all. I'm pleased to be a student here, and I hope we can all be good friends."

Erina, upon hearing this, whipped around so fast some of her hair slapped Hisako in the face. "What?!" she screeched. Not realizing what happened, Erina marched over to Soma to chew him out, leaving Hisako alone.

She stopped right in front of him and glared at him, which was a funny sight since she was a head shorter than him. She could even tell that there were some who trying to hold in laughter, and even Soma's mouth seemed to be twitching ever so slightly.

Embarrassment flooded her entire soul, but she refused to back down from this. "Explain yourself, Soma Yoshida!" she managed to bark. Soma reached into his bag and brought out a piece of paper and handed it over.

Erina grabbed it from his hand and began to frantically read it over. "You were accepted?!" she shrieked. "How?!" Soma rubbed his forehead, not wanting to deal with this girls' high-pitched tone. "The old man accepted me in. After you passed out, he gave me that letter of admission, already printed and signed and everything."

Erina struggled to find the right words to that. She loved her Grandfather to death, but right now she wished she could strangle him. 'Who am I kidding?' she thought to herself. 'My hands couldn't even wrap around his buff neck.'

Soma leaned forward to pet Erina's head. Gasps of amazement and disbelief erupted throughout the class as Erina looked like a normal, cute schoolgirl as she seemed to enjoy Soma's hand in her hair and even closed her eyes and smiled as he slightly ruffled her hair.

"Erina-sama!" Erina recognized "that" tone in Hisako's voice and her eyes snapped open slowly turning to look towards Hisako, dreading what she'd see. When her eyes finally looked upon Hisako, she gulped in fear of what was to come.

"Erina-sama!" Hisako bowed before her friend. "Forgive me! I should've known this boy is your boyfriend! It all makes sense now! The way he and Senzaemon-domo knew each other, the way you act around him! I see now that you two are madly in love!" Erina spluttered as her face grew red as Soma just stared, speechless at the girls' overgrown imagination.

He stepped over to the still-bowing girl. "Actually, Erina and I aren't-" Suddenly, Erina slammed into the side, silencing him. "Whoops, sorry baby. I think I just tripped." Soma's eyebrow raised slightly, but he was smart enough to catch her meaning and play along.

He turned back towards the girl, who waited for him to continue, her eyes sparkling. "Actually, Erina and I aren't dating. We're actually **engaged**. We've been so for about seven months." The ongoing audience was completely silent as that little nugget of info slowly sunk in.

Erina swiftly jabbed Soma in the ribs. 'I'll make you pay for that later, baka.' she thought seethingly. Then she smiled, and continued to fib. "Yeah, sorry for not telling you Hisako. We just weren't ready to tell anyone yet. Only us and our parents know so far. Until now, that is."

Hisako's eyes widened as she realized that what was happening was her fault. "I'm so sorry, Erina-sama! I shouldn't have opened my mouth until we were alone! Please forgive my inconsiderate behavior!"

'If only you knew, Hisako.' Erina thought while still acting as though she really was in love with Soma, which obviously wasn't true. Totally not true. Then, someone in the class asked "Hey! How many times have you two...you know...kissed?"

Erina's face was completely tired of blushing, yet here it was blushing again. Before she could answer, though, Soma answered for her, and made the situation so much worse in the process. "We've kissed countless times, and even had sex a couple times." Now, everyone in the room (besides Soma, of course) was blushing at his words.

"W-wh-what?!" Erina screamed, temporarily forgetting what they were trying to do. However, Soma saved her from blowing their story by covering her mouth. "Hey teach, can my fiancee and I go take a breather? We need to call someone." The elderly woman, who had almost fainted from his earlier statement, quickly nodded and shooed them away towards the door.

"Thanks. We'll be real quick." Before Erina could slap him away, he dragged her with him towards the classroom door. As he passed Hisako, he whispered "I know you've only learned of me now, but please help me and guard the door so no one eavesdrops. It's a personal matter between Erina and I." Hisako nodded immediately and stepped behind them to assume a military "drill sergeant" pose, which obviously told everyone not to take a single step towards the door.

Once Soma stepped into the hallway and shut the door behind him, he released Erina and leaned against the wall separating them from the class. "Are you out of your mind?!" Erina screamed, fully intent to wring her wrath upon him. Soma merely pretended to stifle a yawn. "I don't know what you're talking about. It was your idea, after all."

His uninterested tone made her fume, although why exactly she didn't really comprehend. She growled at him before continuing. "It was because of Hisako. That gleam in her eyes...it only means one thing." Soma recalled the way her eyes shone, then realized something he hadn't thought of. "The old man said you loved to watch anime. Especially Fairy Tail."

Erina made a mental note to shake her Grandfather when she saw him again, and scold him on spilling her secrets to this stranger. She glared at him, waiting for him to make an insult or something. Instead, he shrugged it off and continued with his thoughts, much to her surprise and relief.

"She's a fangirl too, isn't she? That Hisaki girl?" Erina rolled her eyes. "First off, it's Hisako. Get it right. Second off, yes she's a fangirl. That gleam in her eyes meant that she thought she had found her OTP." Soma nodded slowly. "One True Pair. You and me?"

"Yes." Erina sighed, knowing all about her dear friends' habits. "She'll probably give up on it, though. She always thinks she found her OTP, then gives up and flocks to another couple later." Then, she walked up to Soma and grabbed his shirt to drag his face down to her. "At least, she would have if you hadn't went on to say all that crap! I mean seriously! 'We even had sex a couple of times'?!"

Soma smirked, which made Erina's heart race (much to her displeasure, of course). "Well, it was pretty fun. Also, you didn't say I couldn't." Erina spluttered, unable to believe that he could be so insensible. "I didn't expect you to say something as farfetched as that!" Soma's smirk deepened as he brought his face extremely close to hers. Erina struggled to take deep breaths as he moved closer.

"I wouldn't be so sure. After all, isn't that exactly what the old man told you to do to me?" Erina frowned, confused by his words. "What do you mean, that's what he…" Then, she remembered her earlier encounter with Senzaemon, and her mind short-circuited. Her face was now completely hot, and she couldn't form any coherent sentences to say back at him.

Soma nearly sighed, then grabbed her by the hand, earning himself a tiny squeak from Erina. He opened the door to find Hisako still guarding the door. She nodded at him, then stepped to the side in a grandiose fashion, allowing Soma to walk past.

He walked towards Erina's chair and gently set her down in it, since she was too incapacitated to do it herself. The other students couldn't help but stare at Erina as she still stuttered as she tried to regain her composure. Soma, on the other hand, walked over to the empty seat on her left and sat down, placing his feet on top of the desk and his hands behind his head.

'I'm already liking this school.' Soma thought to himself as the stunned teacher attempted to go over the announcements she was required to say, but couldn't really find the right words to say to the class. The students themselves were still in shock, looking back and forth from Soma to Erina. 'Yeah.' Soma smugly thought. 'This is going to be a great school year.'


	4. Update

Hi guys.

Sorry about my long absence. I had numerous things to worry about, and in fact I still do.

On top of these, I also have some personal issues Im dealing with as well.

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten or abandoned this story.

Im also starting to come up with a completely original story (by that I mean "anime" original) so stay tuned.

Ill try to update this story with a new chapter soon.

With this, I bid you all a good day (or night)


	5. Chapter 4

**Heya, everyone! I'm finally able to give to you this new chapter! I'm still dealing with things, but know that I know you guys wanted more, so I worked a little every day until I got done! That being said, it might take this long for the new chapter, but just know that I'll be working on it for you all! Also Nicole, thanks for the concern :) Don't worry, it seems to be resolving itself but it'll take time. Anyways, onwards! Enjoy the chapter, everyone!**

Erina Nakiri marched through one of the many halls of Totsuki, fuming at the seams as she attempted to ignore the whispers and gestures of students around her. "Look." She heard someone say. "That's her fiance right behind her."

She felt her face heat up as she turned her head to glare at Soma Yoshida, who was trudging behind her with his usual impartial expression. Erina's brain was practically overloading with malice towards the male teen.

'Why does God wish me misery?' she thought to herself as she continued towards the exit of the building. 'What horrendous act did I commit to earn such a punishment?!' As she walked, she heard a female student squeal to her friend "Oh my God! They're, like, the cutest couple I've seen!"

Erina audibly choked on air as she quickened her pace, both to go somewhere more private and to try and ditch Soma. Unfortunately, only the former goal was accomplished as the duo exited the building. In front of them was a sleek black car with a driver and a security guard at the door.

Erina turned to Soma, and whispered so no one could overhear. "Well, idiot, this is my ride. Go back to whatever hole in the wall you came from, and don't even think to try and follow me!" Soma merely sighed.

Then, he turned around and began to walk in another direction. Erina momentarily hesitated, wondering if she maybe had been a little too cruel in her words. Before she could make up her mind, however, her guard tapped his earpiece, nodded, then ran towards the retreating redhead and caught up to him.

Erina's eyes widened in total disbelief as the guard gestured Soma to return back to the car, and even ignored her as he brushed past her and opened the door for Soma, who eagerly hopped inside. Then, Soma's head popped back out, and looked at her. "Hurry up, Erina!" he whined, then went back into the car.

Erina's eyebrow began to twitch as her head felt like it was being crushed. She slowly shuffled towards the car and lowered her head to peek inside.

Sure enough, Soma was inside, his legs folded as he exuded a (bored) manly aura. Erina weighed the pros and cons of sitting next to him like that when he tsked at her. "Hurry up already, Nakiri!"

Before she could react, he grabbed her hand and pulled her inside. "Hey!" she cried. "Wait a-" Erina was cut short when her face plowed into Soma's chiseled torso. She mewled softly (much to her embarrassment, _of course_ ) as her cheek rubbed against the fabric concealing his muscles.

Soma didn't seem to notice her reaction, even though Erina felt as though her heart was beating loud enough for everyone in the car to hear. Erina's mind went haywire as her body reacted to him against her will. Forced her to stay clinging to Soma even when the car began to move.

She shivered as she inhaled Soma's scent, which was, by far, more enticing than any dish she had ever encountered. It's sweet, yet sour smell made her mouth water as it seemed to reach deep inside her and rekindle the few fond memories of her childhood, when she was innocent enough to be joyful and carefree.

"Erina, are you okay?" Soma asked as he stared quizzically at her as she began to lightly press herself against him. Erina froze as Soma's voice jump-started her brain. Her face erupted with a rosy hue as she quickly looked up to meet Soma's face, but once she did her jittery feelings all flushed away, replaced by awe at the sight.

His normally blank expression had been replaced with a curious expression. She stared in fascination. There had only been one other time she had seen his face change, and that was when he was cooking. So what could this possibly mean? Erina continued to stare until Soma began to speak. "Erina, your hands are kind of ripping my shirt. . ." Erina looked back at his chest to see that she had, in fact, ripped his t-shirt enough to peek at the glistening muscles on his torso.

She suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to touch his chest, to rub it, to even cuddle against it… "Erina. Snap out of it already, will ya?" She blinked once as she registered Soma's fingers snapping not an inch from her face. She blinked once. Twice. Then, her eyes widened as she reasserted her control over herself.

She quickly sprung back up to an erect sitting posture as she tried to rid her head of these unnecessary thoughts. 'What am I doing?' Erina frantically thought to herself. 'I've never felt anything like this before!' She turned slightly to gaze at him from the corner of her eyes, and inhaled sharply.

Soma himself seemed to have returned back to normal. He sat in his normal lax position, and his face was once again that face of emotionlessness as he stared out his window. However, what threw Erina off was that there was one crucial difference than how he normally looked: his cheeks seemed to have lit up a little, looking a bit pink instead of its normal color.

Erina turned away, her throat letting out a little squeak. They sat in complete silence throughout the rest of the car ride, the only communication between them being their body language and the constant glances at each other (To be honest, that was mostly Erina though).

Once they reached the Nakiri estate, Erina couldn't decide on whether she was relieved or sad that she had to leave the confined space that she and Soma shared. However, she kept her insecurities to herself as she walked up the polished steps to her gigantuous home. She paused, then looked back at Soma, who was following her up the steps.

"What are you even doing here, Soma-kun?" She asked him. He just shrugged, his face changing into one of nonchalance, which only irritated her. Before she could kick his butt off her property though, the doors flew open with a bang that froze her in her tracks.

Senzaemon Nakiri stood with a wry grin. "Well, well. I've heard some _very_ interesting things happened today at school. Fiancees now, are you? Rather quick teens these days are. . ." Erina's eyes bugged out as she gritted her teeth. 'Don't blush.' She thought desperately.'Don't blush don't blu-' Senzaemon zeroed his gaze in on Erina.

"Dear Granddaughter, is that sunburn upon your cheeks or are you blushing?" His words caused Erina to sputter and choke. She shot a pleading glare at her Grandfather, who chuckled. Then he sobered and turned to face Soma, who was maintaining his emotionless face while secretly trying not to grin.

"And if it isn't my soon to be Grandson-in-law! I must say, I always had a feeling you would be the one my Grand-daughter would claim to be her own!" Soma, unfazed by Senzaemon's speech, merely rolled his eyes. Senzaemon walked down to the pair and gripped their shoulders.

"Rest assured, I have already made preparations for you two lovebirds. Please enjoy them." Erina was too busy unleashing the inner tsundere she had within her (I don't wanna be with him! It's not like I like him at all! (Baka! x infinity)), so Soma sighed and grabbed her hand, then dragged her inside. Senzaemon fell in behind them, grinning happily.

In the mansion, Soma looked around in slight fascination. It seemed that the mansion had been redecorated to commemorate Soma and Erina. He seriously doubted that the mansion had previously had been filled with paintings of himself and Erina in various locations and positions, anyways. That wasn't the end of it, though. He also took note of the ceiling, which had also been painted to show Soma in a tux and Erina in a wedding dress, with a bouquet of roses in her hand.

Soma looked at Senzaemon drily. "So this is what you and the servants here were doing all day, old man?" Before Senzaemon could reply, a whole group of maids rushed into the room they were in, taking pictures and swooning over everything. "It's everywhere! Paintings and decorations of Erina-sama and that boy are EVERYWHERE IN THE MANSION!"

The maids started talking and screaming about how they saw it in their bedrooms, the bathrooms, and one even said the main bush in the garden was re-trimmed to show the boy twirling Erina around in a ballroom dance. Soma sweatdropped even more. "You did all this, old man? By yourself? In less than a day?" Senzaemon chuckled softly, then clenched his hands into fists as his laughter grew louder until it filled the mansion.

"Indeed, Soma-kun! It was I alone who created all this! Yes, in less than a day! You and Erina's love **deeply motivated me! I simply had to make these masterpieces myself!** "

Soma was speechless as Senzaemon was moved to tears as he spoke. Soma silently wondered if he was the only sane person in this school. Then, ". . .is that the kid?" Soma's head whipped to stare at the maids, who obviously had heard Senzaemon and now stared at the three.

Soma realized he was still holding an all out tsundere Erina (still going with that (Baka! x infinity) thing), and realized that the piranhas had targeted their prey.

The pack of maids descended upon Soma and Erina with gusto, bombarding him constantly with questions like: "What's your name?","How long have you two been dating?",and even "How'd that God Tongue feel all over your 'umaibo', kid?" (Oh **that** earned some squeals from the maids).

Finally, Senzaemon picked up Soma and Erina, and simply walked away with the two upstairs. "Alright. Back to work, you all. You'll have time later to question these two lovers." The maids dejectedly stopped and got on with their duties.

Soma scoffed and turned to look at Erina, sure that the fiery-tempered girl would be as dumbfounded as he was at all this. Instead, he found a girl with her hands covering her face whilst making soft squealing noises. Soma just stared at her as he watched Erina actually act like a girl for the first time. He started to feel something in the bottom of his stomach. . .something that made him feel empty, but also a little bit of hunger for something.

Soma quickly understood what he was thinking of, and turned to stop staring at Erina. 'Calm yourself, Yuki-Yoshida.' Soma thought. He slowly opened and closed his hand to help him regain dominance in his head. He then turned to look at Senzaemon, who had been admiring his own masterpieces the whole time. "Old man. Where's my room so I can get some privacy?"

Senzaemon turned to pat Soma on the shoulder. "Ah. Forgive an old man for dawdling. I shall escort you to your room, Soma." And with that, Senzaemon practically pushed Soma up the stairs to a set of doors that looked more expensive than the tuition to even get into Totsuki, and that meant something.

"Go on, Soma. Open it." Senzaemon spoke from behind. Soma sighed, then opened the doors. What he saw inside made him want to facepalm himself straight through his face. The room looked so wealthy he imagined only the richest lived in luxury like this. People like CEOs of businesses and politicians. However, there was one thing that immediately drew his attention.

Right there in the middle of the room was a huge circular bed, with curtains draping the entire circumference of the bed. It basically looked like something from a love hotel. He turned to complain at Senzaemon, but before he could Erina was shoved into his arms.

Senzaemon apparently had carried Erina with him when he was behind Soma, all the way to the room, then gently pushed her into him as soon as he turned around. Now he stood before the two with a huge grin. "Enjoy, you two." And with that, he closed the doors. . .and locked them inside together.

Soma rattled the doorknob and pushed against the door, but after a few seconds he decided that he couldn't break out. He turned and looked at Erina, who was just staring at him in shock. Her face was bright red, and she appeared breathless as she gazed at him. Soma didn't really like how Erina seemed to be in a trance while looking at him, and managed to break eye contact.

'Welp.' Soma thought as he slid down to the floor, his back against the doors, and looked at Erina again. 'Hopefully, it doesn't get any worse than this. . .right?'

Meanwhile, Senzaemon sat in his office, and chuckled. As if he had heard Soma's very thoughts, he fingered a golden ring with a diamond embedded into it. The ring was absolutely exquisite, and an inscription in the ring read "Faithfully yours, forever." He placed the ring in a box that read: "To: Erina From: Soma" and chuckled more.

"Oh Soma. This is only the beginning."


End file.
